Posts Tagged ‘Middle East’

The political strategy of the U.S. had to adapt to provide for the needs & wants of the American population. The ‘70s marked the turning point when the U.S. shifted from being an oil exporter to the world’s largest oil importer. The oil crisis of 1973 was the game changer that transformed the international political & financial system into the current system of petrodollars & oil wars.

Iran is a sleeping oil giant holding 9% of the world’s proven oil reserves & with an estimated 2m barrels per day of excess supply already sloshing around international markets, any increase in Iranian output could easily trigger a further rout in oil prices. OPEC may clamp down on this in June, but by then oil may already be selling for $20.

If you think the reasons for owning physical gold and silver are based on number of coin sales, ratio of paper demand per physical ounce, how many tonnes China, Russia, India, Turkey & others own is why you should hold either, think again. With the coming unavoidable events, if you do not have gold or silver, you got nothing.

Brewing conflicts, especially regarding the state of affairs in East Asia, will soon replace economic problems as the center of the world’s attention, including in the investment markets – People who are threatened by these conflicts start looking for safety for themselves, their families & their money.

Given that China has a population size over four times larger than America’s, should it reach a GDP per capita that is comparable to Taiwan or Hong Kong today, it will be a greater potential threat to the United States than anything America has previously dealt with.

The US Energy Information Administration released on Tuesday an early version of its Annual Energy Outlook for 2014. The main item being that the United States will continue to develop its own oil and to press for more efficient cars in order to reduce demand on oil.

There is precious little bullion left in the West today to supply rapidly increasing Asian demand, and it is important to understand how little there is and the dangers this poses for financial stability.

Demand for gold in the Middle East remains robust and there has been an eightfold increase or 700% increase in demand in recent years. Geopolitical uncertainty in the region, from Libya to Egypt to Syria and Iraq and Iran is leading to demand for bullion.

Citigroup strategist Tom Fitzpatrick said that Gold and Silver should surge in the coming years, though silver is in a strong uptrend and will likely outperform gold as the gold silver ratio will drop from its current level at 58.1.